don think even men should play at two clock in the morning because for
me grew up in sporting family and my parents always taught me to wake up at
eight and to go to bed at
if used to going to bed at today would go nuts
if the nadal match had gone to five sets kuznetsova was ready to have her
showdown with kerber moved to an outside court but she would have been playing
in front of sparse crowd
the russian was glad that didn happen
was praying for rafa to win in four sets because it much better to play on
rod laver arena than to play in margaret court arena with nobody watching she
said
at least people keep you up your chin up because you re falling asleep there
playing at two clock
kuznetsova now needs to back up against fellow russian nadia petrova for place
in the quarter finals on sunday
across us networks stars urge haiti donations
new york jan afp
hollywood stars and top musicians led huge fundraising drive for haiti live on
television friday pleading for funds to help the devastated caribbean nation
rise from the ashes
hollywood heartthrob george clooney led galaxy of stars performing live on
national television networks and also manning the phones in the hope for haiti
now telethon
the telethon one of the biggest such events since the aftermath of the
september terrorist attacks was broadcast across every major us
television network
featuring some celebrities and presented by music channel mtv the telethon
came as the caribbean nation struggled to recover from the deadly january
disaster
heart rending images of fragile survivors being pulled from the rubble of haiti
interchanged with emotional performances from top rock acts including coldplay
and bruce springsteen in the attempt to raise millions of dollars for the
shattered country
actress reese witherspoon was among the celebrities who lent hand at the phone
bank handling calls from donors
haiti is tragedy that reaches across all borders all boundaries hollywood
heartthrob george clooney said and at the core of every religion is the belief
that we take care of one another
the haitian people need our help they need to know they are not alone he
told the national audience
in one of the most moving segments of the event rapper wyclef jean told the
national audience am haitian from the ashes we shall rise
other star acts lined up for the telethon airing across mtv abc cbs nbc
fox cnn hbo and other major networks included madonna beyonce jay bono
and jennifer hudson
joining clooney in hosting the program were cnn star reporter anderson cooper
in haiti and wyclef jean in new york
there is so much more for many of us to do cooper said they need to know we
care for one another
facebook and myspace were helping to drum up aid while donors could also go
online at hopeforhaitinow org or give over the phone by dialing haiti
or by just texting the word give to
clooney says he will donate one million dollars of his own money
hollywood megastar leonardo dicaprio announced thursday that he was also giving
one million dollars to the clinton bush haiti fund while brad pitt and angelina
jolie donated one million dollars earlier to help aid group medecins sans
frontieres operations in haiti
in the telethon dicaprio praised aid workers recalling an incident in which
poorly equipped doctor had to use bottle of vodka to clean wound
the magnitude quake killed at least people and left half million
homeless
friday telethon had few parallels over the last decade said charity
navigator an organization monitoring charities across the united states
telethon was held in the wake of the september terrorist attacks
against new york and the pentagon also hosted by clooney the event was
simulcast across network and cable channels raising about million
dollars
another big telethon took place after hurricane katrina struck new orleans in
but that was broadcast only on abc cbs nbc fox and less major channels
about million dollars was raised
nbc and its affiliated networks broadcast telethon in aid of victims of the
asian tsunami in raising million dollars
guantanamo deadline passes but us closure efforts continue
washington jan afp
president barack obama self imposed deadline for closing guantanamo passed
unmet friday as the administration moved closer to trying the alleged
plotters but also to us indefinite detention
friday marked year to the day since obama signed an executive order pledging
to close the controversial detention facility located on the us naval base at
guantanamo bay on cuba southern tip
but since then his administration has struggled to repatriate detainees cleared
for release or find third countries to offer them asylum
it also took government lawyers longer than expected to process those detainees
who would not be released into three categories those who would be tried before
civilian courts those to be prosecuted by military tribunals and those who
would be held indefinitely and without trial
on friday the administration took one step closer to bringing some of
guantanamo highest profile detainees five men accused of plotting the
september attacks before court in new york
the pentagon said it had withdrawn charges against the men that were filed
before guantanamo military tribunal clearing the way for charges to be filed
at new york civilian court instead
this action is procedural step which is part of normal process when an
alternative forum is chosen the pentagon said
the five men including the self described mastermind of the attacks khalid
sheikh mohammed are currently being held at guantanamo but are to be
transferred to new york for trial
obama decision to prosecute the men before civilian us court rather than
military tribunal has come under fire from republican lawmakers and some
relatives of those killed in the attacks
but others have praised his administration decision to accord the men rights
as defendants in civilian trial
the announcement came as reports said the administration would likely hold some
guantanamo detainees indefinitely and without charge in the united states
the washington post reported that justice department led task force had
recommended holding of the remaining men at guantanamo without trial
under the laws of war
the men are considered too dangerous to release but the evidence against them
is insufficient to bring them to trial according to the post
though obama outlined plans to hold some detainees without trial in speech
last year friday reports were met with dismay by human rights groups who had
praised his administration pledge to close guantanamo and uphold international
law
one of the most shameful chapters of american history was to have been brought
to close with the shuttering of the prison at guantanamo bay said anthony
romero executive director of the american civil liberties union
but just as important as closing the prison quickly is closing it right and
that means putting an end to the illegal policy of indefinite detention without
charge or trial
this practice was wrong in cuba and would remain so here reducing the closure
of guantanamo to symbolic gesture he added
the administration has indicated it plans to hold guantanamo detainees at an
illinois prison that the federal government has acquired
but republican lawmakers joined by some democrats fiercely oppose the prospect
of bringing suspected terrorists into the united states adding an additional
obstacle to the administration plans
further complicating the process is supreme court decision that allows
detainees to challenge their detention before us courts
since the decision courts have considered variety of cases and
overwhelmingly ruled in favor of detainees clearing them of terrorism charges
and ordering their release
though the administration has not set new deadline for closing the facility
obama homeland security secretary janet napolitano pledged during visit to
spain friday that the prison would eventually be closed
the goal and the intent remain the same and the will to do so is unabashed
she said
google courts smartphone game makers
san francisco jan afp
google is courting folks that make games people love to play on smartphones
the internet giant has teamed with professional game developers conference
gdc taking place in san francisco in march to offer free nexus one and droid
smartphones to those that register early for the event
sessions at the conference will be devoted to games tailored for mobile devices
making attendees great potential developers of new content for phones using the
android operating system according to gdc organizers
game applications are top sellers at apple wildly popular app store for iphone
and ipod touch devices which google has in its cross hairs with its freshly
launched nexus one and an online android market for mini programs
growing numbers of hardware makers are building smartphones netbooks and tablet
computers based on google open source android software
smartphones are among the most widespread and widely used game platforms and
have proven particularly suited to independent developers experimenting with new
and unusual gameplay according to the gdc
we are constantly looking for ways to help the game development community learn
and thrive said gdc event director meggan scavio
we are so appreciative that we can better reach those goals by actually putting
new opportunity android powered devices into the hands of our
attendees
gdc is billed as the world largest exclusively professional event for game
developers
game developers who register for the conference by february will get nexus one
or motorola droid smartphones to help them catch the android wave according
to gdc
aboard us hospital ship steady stream of haiti injured
aboard the usns comfort jan afp
perched on the deck helicopter opened its doors and medics evacuated
wounded haitian on stretcher then another and another and then fourth
since its arrival this huge us naval hospital ship has seen non stop action
patients have come in with multiple fractures head injuries and gaping wounds
in the main treatment room of the ship which arrived here tuesday evening
patients bore the sad scars of the january quake which killed at least
people and injured some according to haitian government
figures
little girl with her leg in plaster and her left arm in splint lay in one
bed emaciated next to stuffed toy fox in the next bed group of doctors
had gathered around woman trying to help her breathe
two beds down young man feet protruded from his blanket as doctor
manipulated them the survivor cried out in pain
we received patients since tuesday said ship spokesman lieutenant bashon
mann adding that about half of the patients were children
this is just the beginning of the mission for the usns comfort white ship
adorned with red crosses which travelled to haiti shore from baltimore
maryland to help massive international relief effort
haiti health ministry has taken charge of designating the most serious cases
for transfer to the ship for treatment
we are receiving massive amount of people it never stops hour after hour
we are anticipating to receive them weeks after weeks and even months said
commander william todd pediatric orthopedist
clearly exhausted todd told afp that the ship was accepting people with some of
the gravest injuries from the massive magnitude quake
the us vessel offers the families of patients lodging on board the ship but
lot of people are coming alone because they ve lost so many he said
the comfort has around beds six operating rooms and the most modern
medical equipment making it ready to deal with everything from minor injuries
to complex operations
many of them are coming in because their wounds got infected said todd
you have lot of injuries that can become life threatening without proper
attention because it allows for infection and gangrene to come in and that
results in the loss of limbs and even in the loss of life
but todd said he had seen plenty to be hopeful about too particularly with some
of his youngest patients
the beautiful thing about children is the fact that they all are very adaptive
and before you know it they re just going like nothing ever happened he said
despite todd optimistic tone grim reality has settled over the ship
on the deck the steady stream of medical evacuations continued bringing new
patients to the ship including one with her arm in sling
with her safely aboard the seahawk helicopter that delivered her took off
again
by noon some patients had landed on the deck of the comfort which is
surrounded in the sea off haiti coast by half dozen us war ships pressed
into service as part of the massive us military deployment to the haiti relief
effort
though assistance has poured in from around the world the magnitude of the task
remains enormous and the united states is planning to send another hospital
ship the mercy to port au prince to help
obama wants answers from china over google cyberattacks
washington jan afp
us president barack obama is troubled by cyberattacks on internet titan google
and wants answers from china the white house said friday
the state department said meanwhile that us and chinese diplomats have held
several meetings to discuss the attacks which google said targeted the email
accounts of chinese human rights activists and more talks were expected
we are having high level meetings and we will continue to have meetings and we
will continue to press this issue aggressively state department spokesman
philip crowley said we will continue to seek an explanation from china
blanket denial that nothing happened we don think is particularly helpful
crowley added
obama is also looking to beijing to shed light on the cyberattacks which have
prompted google to say it will stop censoring web search results in china
move that may force it to leave the country entirely
as the president has said he continues to be troubled by the cybersecurity
breach that google attributes to china white house deputy spokesman bill
burton said as secretary hillary clinton said yesterday all we are looking
for from china are some answers
clinton on thursday urged beijing to conduct thorough investigation into the
cyberattacks on google and other us firms and criticized china and other nations
for censoring the web and restricting the free flow of information
the secretary of state comments in wide ranging speech on internet freedom
drew the strongest reaction to date from china since the google dispute erupted
last week
we firmly oppose such words and deeds which go against the facts and are
harmful to china us relations foreign ministry spokesman ma zhaoxu said we
urge the united states to respect facts and stop using the so called internet
freedom issue to criticize china unreasonably
ma urged the united states not to let the google row upset relations which are
already dogged by range of disputes over trade and currency issues us arms
sales to taiwan and climate change
ma said china hoped both sides would respect each other core interests and
major concerns properly handle differences and sensitive issues to maintain the
healthy and steady development of sino us relations
state department spokesman crowley said the united states had taken note of
the chinese foreign ministry statement but had no further comment
he said the latest us china meeting had been between kurt campbell assistant
secretary of state for east asian and pacific affairs and the chinese
ambassador here zhou wenzhong
he said clinton speech google and the broader aspects of our relationship
were discussed
we have broad relationship with china crowley said we think that it is
far more stable than it has been in some time that said we have range of
issues where we have you know disagreements
he also said that washington had not yet made formal request to beijing
known as demarche asking for an explanation for the cyberattacks on google
senior state department official told reporters that while the united states
and china have differences on the issue of internet freedom clinton speech
was not directed at china individually
asked about china public posture and the diplomatic talks the official said
there are things that china does for public consumption and that may or may not
reflect the conversations that we have in private
the chinese understood the context of the secretary speech and that it wasn
specifically directed at them said the official who spoke to reporters on the
condition of anonymity
google has not yet stopped censoring search results on google cn but google
chief executive eric schmidt said thursday it will happen soon
we continue to follow their laws we continue to offer censored results but in
reasonably short time from now we will be making some changes there schmidt
said
china is believed to employ thousands of people in vast system of internet
censorship dubbed the great firewall of china which polices what the world
largest online population can see and do on the web
beijing regularly invokes the need to stamp out pornography as key reason for
the controls but critics contend its primary purpose is to quell political
dissent or content seen as threatening to communist party rule
cycling world body mulls football style transfers
adelaide australia jan afp
cycling is set to clamp down on transfers of riders between teams after high
profile swoops by britain rich new sky outfit the sport chief said on
saturday
uci union cycliste internationale president pat mcquaid said criticism of team
sky tactics had prompted reappraisal of transfer rules opening the door to
football style regulation
because of what other people feel was fairly harsh and businesslike work of sky
in trying to get exactly the riders they want maybe we should tighten up the
regulations in relation to transfers mcquaid said
that something we are working on at the moment
sky raised disquiet in the conservative sport by signing ben swift who was
contracted to katusha and triple olympic champion bradley wiggins from garmin
transitions
meanwhile america bmc racing team lured australian world road champion cadel
evans from silence lotto boosting their chances of gaining place on the elite
protour
there no panacea for it because if new team comes into the market as
with sky last year they ve got to get to riders and most of them are
already on contract of one form or other mcquaid said
it difficult for them to come in at good level and just take the available
riders who are already at the end of contract
he did not detail what measures were under consideration but football operates
transfer window system where clubs can only sign during designated periods
mcquaid said under the current system both teams needed to come to an agreement
before rider can move but he said recent developments had shaken up the
small family sport
we probably do need slightly tighter controls and regulations on the transfer
system he said
that something we are looking at at the moment because this past winter there
have been several controversies in relation to transfers
sky with reported multi million dollar budget was formed last year with the
intention of producing britain first tour de france winner
world social forum fetes years in brazil
brasilia jan afp
the world social forum haphazard gathering of social movements proposing
alternatives to capitalism is to celebrate its th iteration when it gets
underway next week in brazil city of porto alegre
under the slogan another world is possible the sprawling confab sees itself
as ragtag labor union intensive rebel alliance opposed to the world economic
forum which is held at the same time in davos switzerland with top corporate
and political figures
the world social forum has its roots in street protests in the us city of
seattle during world trade organization meet
it settled on porto alegre in brazil south as its regular venue from
in part because of brazilian government funding and support from french leftwing
groups
this year some activists are expected to attend demanding world with
fairer distribution of wealth and utopian visions fueled by marxist ideology
that has found fertile ground in latin america
the world social forum fulfills function of making relevant the need to
change the dominant political and economic culture one of its brazilian
founders candido grzybowski told afp
now we have to define the possible world we are calling for
the theme of this year gathering will be the search for proposals for the
future of the process another founder oded grajew said
in we were the only ones saying that globalization won make the world
better now the general feeling is that capitalism is not able to produce
happiness in the world we need to challenge the market culture hegemony that
still exists an italian organizer rafaella bolini said
bernard cassen one of the other architects of the forum said one tactic used
despite resistance from some activists is to reach out to political
forces and progressive governments that can apply the measures suggested by the
forum
in sign of the importance brazil gives to the event brazilian president luiz
inacio lula da silva former trade union leader is to attend the world
social forum on tuesday before traveling on to the rival davos meet
other leftwing latin american leaders including hugo chavez of venezuela
fernando lugo of paraguay evo morales of bolivia and rafael correa of ecuador
may also put in an appearance
two haitians saved from quake rubble after days
port au prince jan afp
an elderly woman and young man were rescued friday after spending days
buried in the rubble of haiti quake hit capital as the death toll from the
disaster soared to more than
the miracle rescues of year old marie carida roman and the unnamed year
old man came despite aid workers saying they were winding down efforts to find
people trapped in the worst disaster on record to hit the americas
thousands of people meanwhile braved new aftershocks to queue for the first
major food handouts in central port au prince since the magnitude quake as
others scrambled for place on free buses out of the squalid city
un spokesman elisabeth byrs said some exhausted international rescue teams were
heading home and others were concentrating more and more on humanitarian aid
for those who need it
but hours later friends and family dug frail carida roman from the ruins of her
home with their bare hands almost day after hearing her faint cries she was
later fighting for life in hospital
trying to find out how can help her survive she has crushed chest and
had lots of maggots all over her body said ernest benjamin an emergency
volunteer from mount sinai medical center in new york city
her shell shocked son year old telephone technician who refused to give
his name said heard her calling yesterday at around or in the
morning friends in the neighborhood helped dig her out with our bare hands
we pulled her out at around this morning
israeli rescuers separately pulled the year old man from the ruins of
three story building near the presidential palace on friday an israeli military
statement said adding he was in stable condition in hospital
us and french doctors called for assistance to rescue the man from tunnel and
within half an hour the israeli team was able to release him whole and
healthy rescue team member major zohar moshe was quoted as saying
they were the first people found alive since two children on wednesday
haiti interior ministry said friday the confirmed death toll from the quake
now stood at it said more than people were wounded and more
than were living in temporary camps
the us geological survey said the haiti disaster has already gone down in
history as the most destructive on record in this region
that probably accurate that this is the most deadly quake to occur in this
part of the world usgs geophysicist dale grant told afp
the international aid effort gathered pace elsewhere with thousands of people
queuing for hours around the destroyed presidential palace as brazilian un
peacekeepers handed out tonnes of ration packs and litres of water
elsewhere the un world food program said it staged massive aid distributions at
football stadium and in the downtown delmas district designed to feed
people
un relief spokesman vincenzo pugliese said the situation was improving with
security largely calm supermarkets set to reopen next week and nearly third
of all gas stations open
but in downtown port au prince residents burned at least six bodies because no
one had collected them since the disaster three charred skeletons could be seen
on pile of garbage and three others were in nearby ruins an afp reporter
said
tens of thousands of seriously injured haitians also remain in primitive
conditions in makeshift field hospitals
the haitian government pushed ahead with plans to move around people out
of the filthy conditions in port au prince to hastily set up villages in the
south and north of the country designed to hold people each
families gathered in downtown port au prince to catch the initial buses
leaving the city on friday
the chaos has left the youngest victims of the quake vulnerable with the un
children fund unicef saying it believed around children had gone missing
from hospitals raising fears of trafficking for adoption abroad
us forces meanwhile said haiti main port had officially reopened friday with
army engineers and navy divers set to start rebuilding the heavily damaged pier
hollywood heartthrob george clooney led galaxy of stars friday in telethon
fundraiser for the earthquake victims broadcast across every major us television
network
featuring some celebrities and presented by music channel mtv the line up
for the hope for haiti now telethon included madonna beyonce jay bono
bruce springsteen coldplay and jennifer hudson
the haitian people need our help they need to know they are not alone
clooney told the national audience
populist obama vows never to quit the fight
elyria ohio jan afp
president barack obama friday vowed he would never stop fighting for
struggling americans in fiery political counter attack meant to mend
democratic morale and his frayed bond with voters
obama sought to recapture the passion of his campaign after wake up call
from voters in liberal massachusetts who sent republican to the senate and
with his health care plan and wider agenda under assault in congress
ll never stop fighting to give every american fair shake obama said at
town hall style meeting in the rust belt state of ohio vital bellwether in
mid term elections in november shaping up as another hit for democrats
striking populist notes obama said he would fight wall street to restore home
values for his embattled health plan to stop credit card companies cheating
customers and to cut exploding deficits
five days before his showpiece state of the union speech obama also showed no
sign of backing down on reforming health care even as the historic bill looks
to be becalmed in congress
got to admit we hit bit of buzz saw obama said of the year long effort
to pass the reform which now looks doubtful after democrats lost their seat
senate supermajority needed to thwart republican blocking tactics
had no illusions when took on health care it was always going to be hard
obama said
and going to keep up the fight for real meaningful health insurance
reforms
posing as the champion of regular people obama added can promise you there
will be more fights in the days ahead
obama critics some of them democrats have faulted him for not being
sufficiently passionate in fighting economic blight for siding too much with
wall street and appearing aloof while everyday americans struggle
but with his soaring approval ratings of just year ago wilting the president
told crowd in ohio you know what win when you win
so long as have the privilege of serving as your president ll never stop
fighting for you ll take my lumps too
his day of rubbing shoulders with ohioans in colleges factories and small
town bar were designed to enhance the president regular guy credentials and
to convince people he knows how tough things are
the truth is being president is also little confining obama said
explaining how he came to neglect his connection with americans as he faced
multiple crises in his first year in office
can just walk around and visit people like used to can just go to
the barber shop or sit at diner
obama noted the political tumult following the loss by democrats of seat in
massachusetts which deprived his party of the senate supermajority it needed
to pass major legislation unchallenged by republicans
while lashing out against the financial industry obama also justified his
highly unpopular decision to stick with the previous administration bank
bailout plans
had he not acted he said the country would have fallen into second great
depression which would have taken terrible future toll on ordinary americans
or main street
in the depressed town of elyria obama made surprise stop at bar and
restaurant known as smitty where friends meet in an apparent bid to
burnish his image as man of the people
he bumped into one man year old charles raynor who was just about to tuck
into plate of french fries
am just pleased to see charlie is still eating fries at obama said as he
posed for picture
another man shawn hatcher was sitting at the bar celebrating his nd
birthday
nothing wrong with am the president said adding am going to buy
this guy lunch
republicans boosted by this week victory of insurgent candidate scott brown in
massachusetts are cranking up their own populist rhetoric
for the past year ohioans have watched anxiously as washington democrats with
the approval of president obama have pushed job killing agenda that includes
stimulus that isn working said john boehner the top republican in the
house of representatives who represents an ohio district
unemployment in ohio is percent even higher than the brutal national
average of percent
but the white house obama says obama billion dollar economic stimulus plan
has created jobs in the state
toyota recall may spread to europe report
tokyo jan afp
japan toyota motor may recall its vehicles in europe due to an accelerator
problem that triggered massive recalls in the united states newspaper
reported on saturday
